COUNTRY MUSIC

Hey folks! Thanks for sticking with me -- see, that last Soapbox was only up for a couple of weeks!

First off, let me thank all the FAR (Freeform American Roots) DJ’s and stations for voting That Kind of Lonely Album of the Year, and me Male Vocalist of the Year. What an honor! Also thanks to John Conquest and Third Coast Music for the existence of the FAR Report itself. We couldn’t do what we do without you guys.

There were lots of good ‘uns in 2001 - Libbi Bosworth’s (also FAR’s Female Vocalist of the Year) Libbiville, Susanna Van Tassel’s The Heart I Wear, Karen Poston’s Real Bad, Jim Stringer and the AM Band’s On The Radio, The Derailers Here Come The Derailers, Wayne Hancock’s A-Town Blues, Ted Roddy’s Tear Time, and Justin Trevino’s Travelin’ Singin’ Man were my very favorites - and I’m sure there’s a couple I forgot! These are country records, folks, not what some call “Texas Music”, and definitely not “retro”. HONKY TONK. Say it with me, industry folks: HONKY TONK. COUNTRY MUSIC. There - now was that so hard?

Teri Joyce’s new long-time-coming CD should have been on my (& many others’) lists, but thanks to a certain Swedish PUNKASS it didn’t get released this year. Oh well, it’ll be even better when it does come out. Teri is one of the finest songwriters in this or any other town, and a damn fine singer to boot, and it’s a shame folks haven’t gotten to hear the bulk of her work. However, you can hear some of it recorded by Marti Brom (“Tomcat” and “Boo Hoo Boogie” on the Box Set, and “Blue Tattoo and “This Is Love Not Liquor” on Snake Ranch), and myself (“Almost Good Tonight” which we co-wrote on That Kind Of Lonely), as well as a tune on my upcoming record due out this summer.

Which brings me to my next issue -- NEW RECORD TIME!! Yup, me & the boys (& gal) are heading into the studio again in February to do ’er again! Hope this one goes as well as the last two, and with my band and a new studio, label, and producer, it should be interesting. I can’t wait to see what we come up with. More details on that later.

By the way, in reference to what I said earlier to “industry folks”: Jack Ingram, Pat Green, Robert Earl Keen, Cory Morrow, etc., etc., etc. ARE NOT COUNTRY MUSIC!! Please stop calling them that. Not slagging them (necessarily or unnecessarily), but if pitiful Nashville pop has taught us anything, it’s that steel guitars, fiddles, and twangy accents do NOT by definition equal “country music“. Call it Texas Music if you want, but since when did the music of Texas not include country music? Just look at those “Best Of Texas Music” lists that are everywhere -- about the only country music that’s ever on them is the occasional Willie, and that’s just because Willie is Texas. If we start telling the world that that stuff is the new “country” music from Texas, then we will be right back where we started from in the early ’90’s. Even worse, because back then even Alan Jackson’s music was more “country” than these guys. Again, right now I’m not trying to slam what those guys do, just PLEASE, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD AND HANK WILLIAMS, PLEASE STOP CALLING IT COUNTRY!!!

By the way, y’all, please keep all the e-mails coming in -- I enjoy knowing you’re reading this, and hearing what you think! Thanks for the response, and keep it up!!